Chapter 1266

Roxanne, Lucian, and Colby stood beside the lab counter. "Dr. Galloway," Roxanne began, "Mr. Damaris isn't here today, so please conduct the experiment with me."

Having completed the preparations, Roxanne glanced at Colby, who stood to the side. He felt something was amiss; a deep reluctance gnawed at him, but he bit the bullet and agreed to avoid suspicion. He stepped closer to Roxanne.

As Roxanne proceeded, she said, "I won't repeat the steps; you should be clear on them. I simply want to see where things went wrong."

Colby offered a strained smile. "Okay, I'll do my best."

Roxanne vaguely acknowledged him without looking. She wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but his reaction seemed odd. This distraction plagued her throughout the experiment.

They reached the point of the previous accident. Surprisingly, no smoke emerged from the flask. Roxanne stood with lowered eyes, her expression unreadable.

Just as Colby was about to speak, he saw her glance sharply at Lucian. Their eyes met, and helplessness washed over Roxanne's face. Colby keenly observed her; a surge of jealousy overwhelmed him. I'm right here, and I understand this experiment better! Why is she asking him for help? They even arrived together this morning. Their relationship is closer than I thought! A belated realization struck him: I might have inadvertently helped him! Intense fury and envy replaced his guilt, his carefully controlled expression slipping.

Roxanne turned to find his malevolent gaze. "Dr. Galloway," she called out, her heart sinking. In all their acquaintance, she had only known him as gentle and refined. This was a side of him she had never witnessed.

Colby snapped back to reality, his dark expression vanishing, replaced by a warm smile. "What's the matter?"

Roxanne's lips parted, but her heart was too heavy for words. Before she could respond, Lucian's voice cut through the silence.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to take a look."

Lucian smoothly positioned himself between them, separating Roxanne and Colby. Roxanne, naturally, had no objection; it was part of their plan. Colby, however, felt a pang of dismay. "The experiment has always been the same. There must have been a mistake that day. Even if you look, you won't find anything."

Ignoring Colby, Lucian turned to Roxanne. "What is this? I don't think I saw you using this during the experiment."

Following his gaze, Roxanne saw a clear bottle on the counter. After a moment's examination, she replied, "Nothing important. It's just distilled water for supplementation."

"Then there shouldn't be a problem adding this, should there? The surveillance footage shows the liquid level in this bottle decreased, likely used in the experiment, but you didn't use it earlier." As he spoke, Lucian picked up the bottle.